Container body and end closure feeding mechanism



Jul 18, 1944.

O. A. SCHMITT CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM Original Fil'ed Nov. 1.0, 1939 10 Sheets-Shes}. 1

July 18, 1944. o. A. SCHMlTT CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM O riginal Filed Nov. 10, 1939 10 Sheets-Sheet 2 mm m% w% N FE Q NENNNN NM y 1944. o. A. SCHMITT 2,354,068

CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM Original Filed Nov. 10, 1939 10 Shees-Sheet 3 y 1944. o. A. SCHMlTT 2,354,068

I CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM Original Filed Nov. 10, 1939 I 10 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTORNEYS N a Q July 18,1944. 0. A. SCHMITT CONTAiNER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM l0 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed Nov. 10, 1959 Gum W2 3! July 18, 1944. o. A. SCHMI TT 2,

I CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM Original Filed Nov. 10, 1959 10 Shets-Sheet 6 INVENTOR.

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ATraIiNEYs y 1944- v o. A. SCHMlTT 2,354,068

CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM Original Filed Nov. 10, 1939 10 Sheets-Sheet 7 July 18, 1944. o. A. SCHMITT CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM 1O Sheets-Sheet 8 mm mm 5 N QQN @N QM mm MN NNN Q Q Q %N\ g Qmw RM N mm EN QNN QM July 1-8, 1944.. '0, SQHMITT 2,354,068

CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM Original F'ild Nov. 19. 1939 lO-Sheets-Shet 9 allow an 3 July 18, 1944. Y o. A. SCHMITT CONTAINER BODY AND 'END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM Original Filed Nov. 10, 1939 10 Sheets-Sheet 10 Patented July 18, 1944 CONTAINER BODY AND END CLOSURE FEEDING MECHANISM I. Otto A." Schmitt, Syracuse, N. Y., assignor. to Continental; Can Company, Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Original application November 10, 1939, Serial No. I 303,991. Divided and this application October 10,1940, Serial No. 360,669

7 Claims. (Cl. 113-114) The invention relates generally to the 'art of manufacturing containers of sheet metal, or of a combination of sheet metal and paper or similar non-metallic'body and end closure elements, and primarily seeksto provide certain new'and useful container body and end closurefeeding equip ments adaptable for use oncontainerbod'y and end closure assembling machines such as are disclosed in the co-pending application for 'U. S. Letters Patent filed by Otto A. Schmitt, on November '10, 1939, Serial'Number 303,991: (Patent 2,323,939, issued July 13, 1943), of which this application is a division.

An object of the invention is to provide, in a machine of the character stated, novel container body and end closure element" feeding and positioning means; and novel means for effecting adjustments in the relative positions of these equipments so as to adapt the machine for assembling containers'o'f different sizes. Another object of the invention is to provide novel container body and end closure feeding and positioning'means including means for feeding an end closure only when a container body is moving into the machine to be assembled with' the end closure.

Another object of the invention is'to provide novel feeding and positioning means of the character stated in which provision is made for assur ing placement of proper complements of container' bodies and end closures in position for being assembled.

Another object of the invention is to provide novel feeding and positioning means of the character stated in which provision is made for stopping operation whenever a proper complement of end closure and container bod is not presented for assembly. 1

With the above and other objects in view'which will more fullyappear, the nature of the invention will be more clearly understood by following the description, the appended claims, and the several views illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

' In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating 'a machine embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section taken along the axis of the main drive shaft of the machine. I

Figure 3 is a fragmentary plan view and part 4 horizontal section illustrating portions of the tur-' ret, the cross feed mechanism and the reciprocable pro-assembly plate and driving connections therefor. j Y V Figure 4 is a detail vertical longitudinal section through the container body feeding table.

, Figure 5 is a horizontal section taken through the table illustrated in Figure 4, the section being taken through the axis of the-table adjusting devices and parts being shown in plan view.

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary plan viewillustrating the mounting of the can body accelerating disks. V

Figure 7 is adetail vertical cross section taken on the line ll on Figure 6.

Figure 8 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical longitudinal section taken through the axis ofthe turret and the end closure feeding mecha-- nism.

Figure 9 is an enlarged detailhorizontal section taken through the end closure feeding mechanism.

Figure 10 is a diagrammatic sectional view illustrating the mechanism for discontinuing operation of the machine whenever a proper complement of container body and end closure to be assembled is not present in the machine.

Figure 11 is a detail vertical section taken on the line u-n on Figure 4.

Figure 13 is a vertical cross section of the machine, the section being taken between the seam ing head and the turret looking toward the turret.

In the machine herein disclosed as including an example of embodiment of the invention there is included a frame A, a motor or power source B, a clutch housing 0, a clutch actuator housing D, and a pneumatic clutch actuator E. The machine also includes a vertically adjustable container body feed-in mechanism F, a cross feed mechanism G, a finished container feed-off way H, an end closure feed I, and aturret J and a sealing unit K disposed inopposed relation on horizontal axes.

The frame A includes a base portion 5 and an upper or main housing portion 6. Within the housingv portion a main or power shaft 1 is rotate ably supported in horizontal bearings 8.

The motor B imparts rotation to a. driver pulley 9 composed of spring-pressed cone disks, and the rotation of this pulley is imparted through a V- belt It to the clutch drive pulley (not shown) disposed within the clutch housing C. The motor may be bodily moved through the medium of a screw adjusting means II in order to vary the driving ratio of the pulley equipments just mentioned so as to vary the speed of operation of the power shaft 1.

The main drive shaft 1 is hollow, and a clutch actuator rod I2 is longitudinally movable in said Shaft d e t nds into t c uat usi D where it is secured to an annularly grooved head 13 splined as at l4 on the shaft 1. A shifter ring I5 is mounted in the head groove and is trunnion-connected with a shifting fork I6 secured upon a crank shaft ll rockably mounted in bearings 18 supported on the frame 5 in the manner best illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings. A crank I9 is affixed to the shaft I1 and is link-connected as at 26 to a crank 2| secured upon another crank shaft 22 rockably supported as at 23 on the frame in the manner illustrated in Figures 1 and 12 of the drawings.

The crank shaft 22 carries a crank arm 24 which is link-connected as at 25 with one end of a piston rod 26 which has its other end secured to a piston 2! reciprocable within a cylinder 28 forming a part of the pneumatic actuator equipment E and secured as at is to the frame portion 6. See Figures 1 and 10 of the drawings. e

The cylinder 28 is connected by a duct 30 with pneumatic control equipment later to be described and includes a slideway 3| traversed by an air vent 32. A venting slide 33 is mounted in the slideway and is equipped with a venting aperture 34 which, when aligned with the venting equipment 32, will serve to admit atmospheric air into the interior of the cylinder 28. The slide 33 is frictionally held against its seat by a spring-pressed plunger 35, and movement is imparted to this slide through the medium of an actuator rod 36. The rod 36 is freely straddled by a boss or fork 3'! projecting from the link 25, and this boss is disposed between spaced stop collars 38 secured to said rod. The slide 33 is normally positioned as illustrated in Figure 10, and in this normal position the venting apertures are out of registry and the cylinder 28 is closed against ingress of atmospheric air. In this condition of the parts it will be obvious that upon evacuation of the cylinder 28 through the conduit 30, the piston 21 will be drawn to the left and. the link 25 and the remaining crank and link connections will be actuated to move the de-clutching rod I2 longitudinally within the shaft 1 for the purpose of disengaging the clutch and discontinuing operation of the machine and, of course, the container body and end closure mechanisms embodied therein. The collars 38 are so spaced that when this de-clutching operation is effected, movement of the fork 31 to the left, as viewed in Figure 10, will not effect an atmospheric venting of the cylinder 28.

When operation of the machine parts has been automatically discontinued, the operator may manually shift the rod 36 to cause the aperture equipments 32 and 34 to communicate and allow air to enter the cylinder 28 so that the piston 21 can be restored to its normal position illustrated in Figure 10. Restoration of the piston to its normal position will cause the fork 31 to contact the outermost collar 38 and restore the slide 33 to the vent closing position illustrated in Figure 10.

A hand lever 39 may be actuated for manually eflecting a de-clutching action and discontinuing the operation of the machine if desired.

The can body feed-in mechanism F includes a table Ml having rigidly mounted, vertically disposed bearings 4| and 42 thereon. The vertical bearing members 4| and 42, respectively, surround a vertical shaft 43 and a vertical sleeve 44, the former including a threaded part 45 threadably received in a bearing 46 stationarily supported on the frame portion 6, and the latter including a threaded portion 41 threadably received in a bearing 48 stationarily mounted on said frame portion. A worm wheel 49 is secured to each of the elements 43 and 44, and each said worm wheel is engaged by a worm gear 50 mounted on a short cross shaft 5| rotatably supported in a bearing 52 and connected by a bevel pinion couple 53 with a manually operable adjuster shaft 54 rotatably supported in bearings 55 secured upon the table and equipped with a hand wheel 56. See Figures 1, '2, and 4 to 7.

The rectangular container bodies or open-ended sleeves 51 are fed onto the table by laterally spaced feeder chains 58 which pass over driver sprockets 59 secured upon a cross shaft 68. This shaft is rotatably supported at the front end of the table and has a driver sprocket 6| affixed to one end thereof and a cam member 62 affixed to its other end. See Figures 4, 5 and 6. The rotating cam member 62 is adapted to alternately lift and lower a roller 63 and the end of the lever 64 to which said roller is affixed. The lever is spring-depressed and is pivoted intermediate its ends as at 65 on the table. The front end of the lever 64 is link-connected as at 66 with one arm of a bell crank lever 61 rockably. supported in a bearing member 68 vertically-adjustably secured at the front end of the table, and the other arm of the bell crank lever carries a vertically adjustable stop member 63 adapted to be alternately projected into and removed from a position for obstructing free movement of the container bodies 51 on the conveyor chains 58.

The vertical oscillations of the stop member 69 are so timed that each time this member is in its lowered position it will intercept temporarily and hold an inwardly traveling container body 51 in the space between two laterally spaced housings ID in the manner illustrated in Figures 6 and 7 of the drawings. Each housing member includes spaced wall portions H forming lateral guides for the traveling can bodies and is adjustably supported as at 12 so that the spaced relation of the housings can be varied. Beneath the housings the table is equipped with a pair of laterally aligned slideways 13 in each of which a bearing block 14 is slidably mounted. Each block 14 includes a vertically disposed bearing portion 15 in which is rotatably mounted a shaft member 16, and a horizontally disposed bearing portion 11 in which is rotatably mounted a sleeve 18 equipped with a bevel pinion 19, said sleeves surrounding and being spline-connected to the cross shaft 60 hereinbefore referred to. Adjusting devices are provided for moving the blocks 14 in the slideways I3, and by this means the spaced relation of the shafts 16 can be adjusted. A bevel pinion 8! is secured to the lower end of each shaft 16 and meshes with the bevel pinion 19 of the adjacent sleeve 18, and by this means the rotation of the shaft 60 is imparted to the spaced vertical shafts 16.

A feed wheel 82 for the can bodies 51 is secured upon the upper end of each shaft 16, and each wheel carries a feeder segment 83 grooved at 83 to straddle the reduced rib ll of the side guide wall portion H in th manner illustrated in Figure 6 of the drawings. Said feeder segments 83 cooperate in yieldably gripping and impartingaccelerated feed movement to the can bodies in the manner illustrated in Figures 6 and '7. of

the drawings. The can bodies 51 are fed into the machine in a continuous line by the chains 58, the line ofcans being alternately intercepted and then released by the vertically oscillating stop member 69. Each time the stop 69 is moved up to release the can bodies the segments 83 engage the side walls of the foremost can body in the line and rapidly move it away from the line while the stop member is elevated and feeds it into the zone of influence of the other feeding devices of the table. Immediately after the feeder segments have thus separated the foremost can body from the remainder of the line, the stop member 69 will descend and again intercept the line of can bodies.

A feed bar 84' is reciprocably mounted in a receiving grooveway 85 formed in the table and carries a fixed feed finger 86 at its front end and equi-distantly spaced series of spring-elevated feed fingers 81 throughout the remainder of its length. The feed bar is flanked at its respective sides with guide rails 88 which are ad-, justably supported as at 89 on the table so that their spaced relation can be altered. A guard rail 90 is disposed in spaced relation above the feed bar and carries a plurality of gravity depressed back check fingers 9I which function to hold can bodies in the positions to which they have been fed each time the feed bar is retracted for a new feeding stroke. 7 rail also includes a spring-depressed back check finger 92 disposed in cooperative relation above the fixed finger 86 and which is displaced by each can body as it is rapidly moved into the feed line by the rotating Wheels 82.

The main shaft 1 has a worm gear 93 affixed thereon which meshes with a worm wheel 94 on a cam shaft 95 rotatably supported in vertically aligned bearings 96 and 91, respectively, provided in the base frame and the frame housing portion 6. Spur gears 99 and 99 are affixed to the shaft 95 and this shift also carries a grooved plate cam I00, a grooved drum cam IOI, aspur gear I02, and a grooved plate cam I03 in the manner best illustrated in Figure 12 of the drawings, the purpose for all of which willbe disclosed hereinafter.

The spur gear 99 meshes with a spur gear I04 on a shaft I05 rotatably supported in a vertically disposed bearing I06 in the frame housing 6 and having a cam I01 affixed to the upper end thereof. The purpose of this cam will later become apparent.

The spur gear I04 meshes with a spur gear I09 secured upon a shaft I09 splined in the gear I08 and vertically rotatable within the screw sleeve 44 hereinbefore referred to. The shaft I09 carries a spur gear H at its upper end which includes an off-center crank pin III on which a crank member I I 2 and an integral or rigidly connected pinion I I3 are rotatably mounted. The pinion I I3 meshes with the internal ring gear II4 which is fixedly mounted as at' II on the table. The crank member II 2 is connected by an adjustable link II6 with a bracket member II1 secured to and depending from the feed bar 84.

The pinion I I3 is so proportioned with relation to the ring gear within which it meshes that as it is rotated about within said ring gear the position of the crank member I I2 will constantly be altered so that its pivotal connection with the link II5 will always move in a straight line centered on the feed bar slideway, and by this means the rotary motion of the vertically dis- The guard posed shaft I09 is transmitted in the form of the desired straight line reciprocation to the feed bar 84.

The spur gear II 0 meshes with a pinion II 8 mounted on a shaft rotatable in a vertically disposed bearing II9 secured upon the table and connected by a bevel gear couple I20 with a shaft I2I having rotative bearing in a portion of the same bearing member H9 and ma bearing I 22 secured as at I23 on the table. The bearing I23 alsorotatably supports a short shaft I24 which is bevel gear coupled as at I25 with the shaft I2I and carries a driver sprocket which is chainconnected as at I26 with the shaft 60 hereinbefore referred to for the purpose of imparting rotation to the shaft 60. See Figures 4, 5, 6 and 7 of the drawings.

' The guard rail 90 is'supported on a bracket arm I21 which is pivotally mounted as at I23 on a standard I29 vertically-slidably secured as at I30 on the table in the manner illustrated in Figure 11 of the drawings. Vertical adjustment of the standard I29 may be effected through the medium of an adjuster screw I 3I which is threaded through 9, lug portion of the standard and engages an abutment block I32 affixed to the table. It will be obvious by-reference to Figure 11 that the canbody guiding rails 88 can be adjusted laterally to accommodate can bodies of different sizes, and this adjustment can be accompanied by a vertical adjustment of the guard rail 90. The guard rail 90 may also be freely swung upwardly about its pivotal mounting I28.

The turret J comprises a plate or disk body I33 having a plurality (eight being shown) of equidistantly spaced peripheral pockets I34. Each pocket is flanked by slideways I35 in which opposed jaw members I36 are slidably mounted. Pin and slot equipments I31 limit movement of the jaws toward each other, and each opposed pair of jaw's is spring-urged toward eachother to the limit permitted by said pin and slot equip.- ments by compression spring equipments I38. The opposed edges of the jaws are grooved as at I39 to receive and retain the edges of end closures fed into the ockets in the manner hereinafter to be described.

The disk or body I33 of the turret is removably secured to the end of a turret sleeve or shaft I40 rotatably supported in a, horizontal hearing I 4 I provided therefor in the machine frame. The shaft I4I carries a-disk I42 at its other end, and a plurality (eight in this disclosure) of equidistantly spaced rollers I43 project from this disk in the manner illustrated in Figures 8 and 12 of the drawings. Selectively positioned sleeves I44 serve to space a can body supporting disk I49 with relation to the turret plate I33 as shown in Figures 3 and 12, and this disk I49 is equipped with peripheral can body receiving pockets aligned with those of the plate I33 for supporting the rear ends of the container bodies.

The turret is indexed by an indexing cam I45 which engages the indexing rollers I43 in the manner illustrated in Figures 8 and 12 and operates in a manner well-known in the art for moving the turret through successive steps to present the turret pockets at successive stations and to hold the turret for an interval at the indexed positions while the various operations incident to assembly of the container parts are effected. The cam I45 is mounted on the upper end of a shaft I46 rotatably supported in a ver: tical bearing I41 on the frame, and this shaft carries a spur gear I48 at its lower end which meshes with the spur gear I 02=within the frame housing portion 6.

A concentric track sector I49 opposes the .open pockets of the turret, over about half the lower portion of the turret in the manner best illustrated in Figures 12 and 13 of the drawings, and this sector is removably secured as at I50 upon the portion 6 of the machine frame.

Upon a housing or super-structure framing I5I an end closure stack I52 is hingedly mounted as at I53. The stack provides a vertical way'in which a stack of container end closures I54 are supported on spring-pressed fingers I55. A vertical slideway I56 is provided beneath the stack, and a slide member I51 is reciprocably mounted in this slideway and carries a suction cup I58 at its upper end adapted to be alternately engaged with and withdrawn from contact with the stack of end closures for the purpose of individually withdrawing closure members from the stack.

The slide I51 includes a suction duct 559 which communicates at one end in the suction cup I58 and is connected by a conduit I60 with the interior of a valve plate I6I spring-urged as at I62 against a valve member I63 freely rotatable about a stationary stud shaft I64 on which said Valve plate I6I is mounted and held against rotation. This valve equipment serves to time suction communication between the suction cup I58 and a suction source in a manner soon to be described. The interior coring of the valve plate I6I is connected by a conduit I65 with the interior of a valve structure I66 mounted on the guard rail 90, and the valve structure I66 also has a conduit connection I51 with the suction source conduit I68 leading to an evacuating pump or other source of negative pressure (not shown).

The valve structure I66 is equipped with a seat I99 between the duct connections I85 and I81, and a valve member I10 cooperates with this seat to permit or prevent communication between. said ducts. The valve member I10 is mounted on a plunger HI and is normally pressed against its seat by a compression spring I12. The plunger is connected by a link I13 with one arm of a bell crank lever I14 which is pivoted at I15 on the guard rail 90 and includes a horizontal arm or le portion I16 positioned as illustrated in Figures 4 and 10 of the drawings for being lifted by a can body 51 entering the zone of influence of the feed bar 84 in the manner clearly indicated in Figure 10.

Each time an incoming can body lifts the bell crank arm I16 and opens the valve I10, suction communication is afforded through the ducts I68, I61, I65; the control valve equipments I 6| and I63; and the ducts I60 and I59, so that when the suction cup I58 is pressed against the bottom of the stack of end closures I54 and again withdrawn from contact with the stack it will remove the lowermost closure from the stack and move it downwardly. It will be understood, ofcourse, that the communication through the various ducts and passages just referred to is properly timed by the valve I63 which is rotated in timed relation with the other feeding devices.

Each end closure thus withdrawn from the bottom of the stack is deposited on a pair of horizontally disposed laterally spaced conveyor chains I11 which pass over sprockets I18 on an idler shaft I19 rotatably supported in the housing I5I and over driver sprockets I80 mounted on a driven shaft I BI rotatably supported in said housing.

season They shaft I 8I may be manually rotated by use of ahand wheel I82 affixed thereto, but during the normal operation of the machine it is actuated mechanically and in suitably timed relation with the other mechanisms of the machine. The shaft has a spring-pressed overload release drive head I83 keyed thereon which yieldably holds driving and drive releasing balls I814 in seats or recesses on a spur gear I85 freely rotatable about the shaft NH and adapted to be driven by an intermeshing small spur gear I86 keyed on a sprocket sleeve I81 secured to the valve rotor I63 and driven by a chain connection I88 with a sprocket-on the cross shaft I89 rotatably supported as at I90 in the housing I5I. The shaft I89 is driven by a bevel pinion couple I9I with the upper end of the shaft I05.

' A cam 192 is secured on the shaft I89 and engages a roller I93 mounted on one end of a lever I94 which is-pivotally supported intermediate its ends as at I95 and has its other end connected as at I96 with the suction cup actuated slide member 451. This lever is urged to its slide lowered position by a tension spring I91. The shaft I89 also carries a grooved plate cam I98 which actuates a feeler means as will later be more specifically described.

Container end closure feeding lugs I99 project from the chains I11, and these lugs engage the end closures individually deposited on the chains I11 by the suction cup I58 and individually deliver the end closures into the downwardly curved guide orjchute portions 200 from whence they are delivered into the'vertically disposed guideways 20I mounted on a frame plate 202 which is secured in vertical position upon the housing I5I directly in advance of and close to the upper portion of the turret. See Figures 8, 9 and 13.

The plate 202 is provided with an opening 203 which registers with the uppermost turret pocket presented one station beyond the vertical in the direction in which the turret moves. This comprises a test station at which means is positioned for detecting the presence or absence of an end closure in the turret pocket presented at that station. See Figure 10.

The plate 202 supports a valve structure 204 in the manner best illustrated in Figures 8 and 9 of the drawings, and this valve is connected by the duct 30 with the clutch control cylinder 28 and by another duct 205 with a similar valve structure 206 secured upon the guard rail 90. It will be noted that the ducts 36 and 205 of the valve structure 204 are disposed in spaced relation, and that the valve structure 206 is connected by a duct 201 with the suction source duct I68, said duct 201 being similarly spaced fromv the duct 205. A seat 208 is interposed between the ducts 205 and 261 within the valve structure 206,. and passage through this valve structur is controlled by a valve member 209 which cooperates with said seat and is carried by a plunger :member 2 I 0. The valve member 209 is urged toward its seat by a compression spring 2| I, and the plunger is connected to one arm of a bell crank lever 2I2 pivoted as at 2E3 on the guard rail 90 and including a horizontally disposed arm or leg portion 2M adapted to be actuated by a container body 51 for unseating the valve member 209 in the manner illustrated in Figure 10.

The valve structure 264 also includes a seat 2I5 interposed between the ducts 30 and 205 and controlled by -a valve member 2I6 carried by a plunger 2 l1 spring urged inthe valve seating direction by a compression-spring 2I8 and having an abutment head 2I9 thereon.- A feeler head 220 is movable in the plate opening 203 so as to be projectible into and retractible from turret pockets presented at the testing station in the manner illustrated in Figure 10. The head 220 is mounted on a plunger 22I which is slide-guided as at 222 on th valve structure 204 and has an abutment ear 223 straddling the valve plunger 2I1. The rod 22I also has an abutment collar 224 thereon, and a block 225 is slidably mounted on said plunger and yieldably held against the collar 224 by a compression spring 226.

A crank shaft 221 is rockably supported on the plate 202 and has a depending crank 228 which is slot and pin connected as at 229 with the block 225. It will be obvious by reference to Figure of the drawings that as the crank 228 is moved to the left it will move the feeler head 220 into the turret pocket presented at the test station. Should no container end closure I54 be present in the pocket the head would move freely into the pocket and the abutment ear 223 would engage the valve rod abutment 2I9 and unseat the valve member 2 I 6. Whenever a container end closure is present in the turret pocket, the feeler head Will engage it in the manner illustrated in Figure 10 and further movement of the head will be arrested. When movement of the feeler head 220 is thus normally arrested by presence of a container end closure in the turret pocket, normal additional movement of the crank arm 228 is permitted by sliding of the block 225 and compression of the spring 226. The rock shaft 221 also carries a crank 230 connected with a thrust link 23I equipped with a roller 232 at its other end which rides in the groove in the plate cam I98. It will be obviousthat rotation of the cam I98 imparts the desired oscillation to the crank member 228. See Figures 1, 9 and 10.

In a horizontal slideway 233 formed on the machine, a cross slide 234 is reciprocably mounted. One end of a link 235 is pivotally connected to the slide as at 236 and the other end of this link is pivotally connected as at 231 with a crank arm 238 secured upon the upper end of a, shaft 239 rockably mounted in bearings vertically disposed'on the frame. At its lower end, the shaft 239 carries a crank arm 240 which is link-connected as at I with a crank disk 242 adjustably secured to an idler gear 243 meshing with the .gear 98 hereinbefore referred to. The cross slide 234 has a feed arm 244 secured to one end thereof, and this arm functions to feed container bodies laterally off the feed table 40 and into the body is being tested in the manner diagrammatically illustrated in Figure 10. It will be observed also that the'valve structures 204 and 206 are connected in series with the declutohing mechanism actuating cylinder 28. Thus both of the valve members 2I6 and 209 must be unseated by the absence of an end closure and the presence of a container body in order to pneumatically effect a declutching actuation and a stoppage of the feeding mechanisms and other machine part operation. In this manner the operation of the machine will be stopped whenever proper complements of container bodies and end closures are not in proper position to bemoved into assembled relation in the turret pockets. Whenever the machine is stopped by a test indicating the absence of an end closure in the particular turret pocket which is to receive the container body engaging the bell crank lever arm 2 I4 at the time the .test is made, and it is desired to normally continue operation of the machine, the operator. has but to manually insert an end closure I54 in the empty pocket and restart the machine in the manner hereinbefore described.

At its left hand end, as viewed in Figure 13, the cross slide 234 carries a pair of spaced stripper or discharge fingers 245 which are adjustably supported as at 246 on said slide. It will be obvious by reference to Figures 3 and 13 of the drawings that each time the cross slide moves to the left as viewed in these figures the feeder elements 244 turret pockets as they are presented in horizontal position in the manner best illustrated in Figure 13 of the drawings. See also Figures 3 and 8.

The various feeding devices for the container bodies 51 and the end closures I54 and the turret are so cooperatively timed that each container body 51 which actuates the bell crank lever arm I16 and the valve member I10 connected therewith will so control the feeding of an end closure 7 I54 that that particular end closure and the conand 245 carried thereby will respectively function to feed a container body 51 into a horizontally presented turret pocket and a finished or completely assembled container and endclosure for the turret pocket horizontally presented at the opposite side of the turret.

End closures usually include depressed central portions dimensioned to fit snugly within the end of the container bodies with'which they are assembled, and because of these central portion projections it is necessary to initially position the container bodies and end closures in spaced relation in the pockets and then to move the bodies longitudinally in order to properly nest the end closures therein prior to permanent'assembly. This preassembly or nesting is accomplished while a given body and end closure complement is at rest at the body receiving station and by a reciprocable pusher member or pie-assembly plat 241 adjustably mounted on a slide 248 which is spring held against the actuator cam I01 hereinbefore referred to.

Following the pre-assembly or nesting of the complementary container elements at the body receiving station and before the container elements are permanently assembled at the securing station, the rear ends of the containers are'opposed by a stationary, adjustably mounted abutment sector 249 (Figs. 3 and 13) having its abutment face disposed flush with the abutment face of the pre-assembly plate 241 when the latter is at the completion of its'nesting function. See Figures 3 and 13.

When the turret pockets are presented at'the lowermost vertical position, they are at the securing station, at whichstation the end closures are permanently secured to the container'bodies by a seaming operation. I

At the securing station'there is provided a vertically reciprocable slide member 250 which is moved toward the turret each time a turret pocket comes to rest at said station. The slide member is wedge shaped at its upper end and serves to engage between and separate'the spring pressed jaws I36 between which the end closure I54 at that station is held, thereby to free the edges of said closure now nested in the end of'the companion container body. The slide 250 is reciprooated through the medium of the pivoted rocker element I engaged with the cam IUI hereinbefore referred to.

After the jaws I36 have been separated by the slide 25I, a chucking pad 252 is forced against the rear end of the container to slide it forwardly in the turret pocket against the chuck of the seaming head. Reciprocation is imparted to the pad 252 in 'proper timed relation to the turret movements by a slide and roller connection 253 with the cam I03 h'ereinbefore referred to. See Figures 12 and 13.

The take-off way H includes a supporting table 254 upon which are mounted guide rails 255 dise posed in a djustably spaced relation in the manner illustrated in Figures 3 and 13 of the drawings. A screw member 256 supports the table 254 and is threadably adjustable in a bearing arm 251 swingably mounted as at 258 upon the frame. Thus the take-off way H is mounted for vertical adjustment so that it can be properly positioned with respect to containers of different sizes presented at the discharge station, and this way H can also bes'wingably displaced so as to facilitate access to machine parts there-adjacent, See Figures I, 2, 3 and '13.

The seaming head employed in this machine and generally designated K is horizontally disposed with an open end portion opposed to the lower part of the turret in the manner illustrated in Figures 1' and 12 of the drawings. The structural details of the seamin head form no part of the invention claimed in this divisional application and need not be described in detail herein. This seaming mechanism may include the usual rotor and seaming roller equipment and actuating devices therefor including driver gears 259 and 260 to which rotation is imparted by power transmitting connections 26I from the driver shaft 1'. The usual knockout rod 262 may be includ'ed and be reciprocated in proper timed relation to the other machine equipments by movement transmitting connections 263 with the rotary cam I60 hereinbefore referred to.

It will be observed by reference to Figures 1, 2 and 12 of the drawings that the seaming head K is swingabl'y mounted, as at 264, so as to be swingable about a vertical axis disposed to one side of the axis of the head. Thus the head can be completely swung away from its cooperative relation with the turret so as to facilitate access to and manipulation of turret and seaming head parts. In order to enable this swinging movement, the knockout rod driving. connections include a quick releasable couple at 265".

In operation, the container bodies are fed onto the feed-in table in a continuous line in the manner indicated in Figure 6 of the drawings, The inf'eeding line of container bodies is intercepted by the depressed stop member 69 until the accelerating segments 83 are about to contact the most advanced container body in the manner indicated in said Figure 6. At this time the stop member 69 is'lifted to free the container body and it is rapidly moved away from the line of incoming can bodies by the rotating segments 83 and fed into the, zone of influence of the feed bar 84.

As the container body moves under the guard rail 90 and" over the feed bar 84 it displaces the spring depressed detent 92 and rides over the fixedly mounted detent 86 on the feed bar 84'.

As it attains this position thecan body actuates the bell crank lever I14 and displaces the valve member I10 thereby opening suction communication through the ducts I 68, I61, 55 so that when the rotary valve I63 effects a communication with the duct I60, a suction will be created at the suction cup and the reciprocating cup will withdraw the lowermost end closure I54 and deposit it on the feed chains I11 so that it will be deposited in the turret pocket which is to receive the container body which controlled the feeding of said end closure.

The parts are so timed that when the turret has advanced from the end closure receiving station to the next or end closure presence testing station, the container body which controlled the withdrawal from the supply stack of the particular end closure contained in the pocket will have been advanced to the control station illustrated at the left end of the feed line portion shown in Figure 10. At this testing station, the feeler head 22!] is moved into the turret pocket in the manner hereinbefore described, and the end closure I54 in that pocket will intercept its move ment in the manner illustrated in Figur 10 so that the valve member 2| 6 will not be displaced for the purpose of opening suction communication. It will be noted, however, that each time a can body arrives at the control station stated it will effect unseating of the valve memher 289. With the valve member 209 thus displaced by the container body which is to be fed into the pocket now positioned at the test station, should no end closure be present in the pocket, due to faulty operation of machine parts or the exhausting of the supply of end closures, the feeler head 22!] will move full stroke into the turret pocket and the lug 223 movable therewith will act to unseat the valve member 2I6, thus opening suction communication through both valve structures 204 and 206, the ducts I 68, 201 and 33, thereby evacuating the cylinder 28 and bringing about a declutching of the motor and an automatic stopping of the machine operation.

If it is desired to continue operation of the machine, the operator can manually insert an end closure I54 in the empty pocket so that a proper complement of can body and end closure will be presented for ultimate assembly, after which he will manually shift the slide 33 to vent the cylinder 28 and then manually reset the clutch to again start the machine. In manually resetting the clutch, atmospheric communication through the ports 32 and 34'will be broken by automatic shifting of the slide 33 in the manner hereinbefore described.

As the turret pocket bearing the end closure advances from the testing station into horizontal position at the container body receiving station, the particular container body which cooperated in the testing of the presence of said end closure will be shifted by the arm 244 into said pocket. While the turret still is at rest at this station, the pre-assembling plate 241 functions in the manner hereinbefore described to effect a preassembly or nesting of the containerbodyv 51 and end closure I54 supported in the turrret Docket.

As the turret moves from the container body receiving station toward the securing station, the abutment sector 249 opposes the rear end of the temporarily'assembled' container and confines it against displacement in the pocket, and as the turret pocket is presented at the securing station the container is registered with the chuck of the aasaocs 7 seaming mechanism and with the chucking-pad 252. T

After the turret comes to rest at the securing station the jaw separator slide 250*is' elevated to separate the jaws I36 and free the edges ofthe end closure fromthe grooves I39- thereinyand the slide 250 is held against the turret and serves to complete the support and confinement of the container in the pocket during the seaming operation next to follow. After the jawshave been separated in the manner stated, chucking jaw 252 is actuated to force the loosely assembled container parts into engagement with the chuck between the seaming rollers'of the seaming head K. With the parts in this condition the seaming or end closure securing function is'completed, after which the slide 250 and the chucking'pad 252 are returned to their normal positions and the cam Hi actuates the knockout rod 262 to displace the finished container. I

When the pocket containing the finished container reaches the horizontal position atthe discharge station it is ejected from the pocket by the cross arm carried feeder arm 245 and gnters the feed-oil way H between the side rails It is of course to be understood that the details of structure and arrangement of parts may be variously changed and modified without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

ii. In a machine of the character described, a container body and end closure assembly 'station, means for moving individual container bodies and end closures along individual paths in timed relation so as to be presented in com plementary relation with an end closure .iri'registry with each container body at said'as'sembly station, driving means for saidcontainer body and end closure moving means, an end closure testing station, a container body testing station, said testing stations being spaced like feed time intervals from the assembly station, means for testing the presence of end closures atthe en'd closure testing station, means for testing the presence of container bodies at the container body testing station, driving means controlling means, and means cooperatively connecting the two testing means with the controlling means for actuating the latter to stop the driving means only when the container body testing means is engaged by and detects the presence of a container body and the end closure testing means fails of engagement with an end closure for test ing the presence thereof. v

2. In a machine of the character describedya turret rotatablestep-by-step and having a plurality of equidistantly spaced pockets inthe periphery thereof, means for feeding an end closure into each pocket, meansiorfeeding a container body into each pocket, means for-driving said two feeding means and the turret in timed relation to place the end closuresand container bodies in complementary relation in said pockets, and means including a tester element individually engageable with an-end closure 'in one said pocket and a second tester-element individually engageable with a container-body being fed for assembly in said one pocket and controlled both by the presence of a container body placed on the container body feeding means in position to be received in said one pocket and a simultaneously occurring absence of a closure in said one pocket for discontinuing operation of the machine.

.3. In a machine of the character described, a turret'having peripheral pockets therein adapted to receive container bodies and end closures in position for being assembledwith said bodies, means for indexing the turret, means for feeding end closures to the turret pockets, means for driving the indexing means and the feeding means, a tester station, a feeler element at said station, means to reciprocate said feeler element into and out of the turret pockets as they are presented at said tester station, a suction source, means operable upon communication with said source to disable said driving means, a valve, a duct connecting the valve with the suction source and said disabling means, said closures when properly positioned in the pockets serving to intercept feeler movement and prevent full movement of the feeler into said pockets, and means to cause the valve to move with the feeler only when the feeler element moves fully into a turret pocket thereby to open said valve so as to open'communication between said suction source and disabling means. I

4. In a machine of the character described, a turret having peripheral pockets therein adapted to receive container bodies and end closuresin position for being assembled with said bodies, means for indexing the turret, means for feeding end closures to the turret pockets, means for feeding container bodies into ,said pockets, means for driving the indexing means and said two feeding means in timed relation to place the end closures and container bodies in complementary relation in said pockets, a tester station, a feeler element at said station, means to reciprocate said feeler element into and out of the turret pockets as they are presented at said tester station, a suction source, means operable upon communication with'said source to disable said driving means, a valve including a seat and a'valve element engageable with said seat, a duct connecting the valve with the suction source and said disabling means, said closures when properly positioned in the pockets serving to intercept feeler movement and prevent full movement of the feeler into said pockets, means to cause the valve element to move with the feeler and away from said seat only when the feeler element moves fully into a turret pocket thereby to open said valve so as to open communication between said suction source and disabling means, and a second suction source controlling valve interposed between the first mentioned valve and the suction source and connected in series in said duct with said first mentioned valve, and actuating means operable by container body contact at a definite place on the container body feeding means so related to said tester station as to be effective for holding said second valve open only when a container body is in position for ultimately being brought into cooperative relation with the particular closure at that moment opposite the feeler at the tester station whereby disabling of the driving means is controlled both by the presence of a body and the simultaneous absence of a closure in cooperative relation for being assembled one with the other.

5. In a machine of the character described, a turret having peripheral pockets therein adapted to receive container bodies and'end closures in position for being assembled with said bodies, means for indexing the turret, means for feeding end closures to the turret pockets, means for driving the indexing means and the feeding means, a tester station, a feeler element at said station, means to reciprocate said feeler element into and out of the turret pockets as they are presented at said tester station, a suction source, means operable upon communication with said source to disable said driving means, a valve including a seat and a valve element engageable with said seat, a duct connecting the valve with the suction source and said disabling means, said closures when properly positioned. in the pockets serving to intercept feeler movement and prevent full movement of the feeler into said pockets, and means to cause the valve element to move with the feeler and away from. said seat only when the feeler element moves fully into a turret pocket thereby to open said valve so as to open communication between said suction source and disabling means, said disabling means including a clutch connected in the driving means and a declutching means including an air cylinder connectible with said suction source through the valve which includes the valve element movable with the feeler and having an atmospheric vent communicating with the interior thereof, a piston movable in said cylinder by suction action for effecting the declutching function, and a normally closed vent controlling member automatically moved during each declutching function to the cylinder venting position and adapted to be manually returned to its normal position.

6. In a machine of the character described, a turret having peripheral pockets therein adapted to receive container bodies and end closures in position for being assembled with said bodies, means for indexing the turret, means for feeding end closures to the turret pockets, means for feeding container bodies into said pockets, means for driving the indexing means and said two feeding means in timed relation to place the end closures and container bodies in complementary relation in said pockets, a tester station, a feeler element at said station, means to reciprocate said feeler element into and out of the turret pockets as they are presented at said tester station, a suction source, means operable upon communication with said source to disable said driving means, a valve includin a seat and a valve element engageable with said seat, a duct connecting the valve with the suction source and said disabling means, said closures when properly positioned in the pockets serving to intercept feeler movement and prevent full movement of the feeler into said pockets, and means to cause the valve element to move with the feeler and away from said seat only when the feeler element moves fully into a turret pocket thereby to open said valve so as to open communication between said suction source and disabling means, said disabling means including a clutch connected in the driving means and a declutching means including an air cylinder connectible with said suction source through the valve which includes the valve element movable with the feeler and having an atmospheric vent communicating with the interior thereof, a piston movable in said cylinder by suction action for efiecting the declutching function, and a normally closed vent controlling member automatically moved during each declutching function to the cylinder venting position and adapted to be manually returned to its normal position, and a second suction source controlling valve interposed between the first mentioned valve and the suction source and connected in series in said duct with said first mentioned valve, and actuating means operable by container body contact at a definite place on the container body feeding means so related to said tester station as to be effective for holding said second valve open only when a container body is in position for ultimately being brought into cooperative relation with the particular closure at that moment opposite the feeler at the tester station whereby disabling of the driving means is controlled both by the presence of a body and the simultaneous absence of a closure in cooperative relation for being assembled one with the other.

7. In a machine of the character described, a turret having peripheral pockets therein adapted to receive container bodies and end closures in position for being assembled with said bodies, means for indexing the turret, means for feeding end closures to the turret pockets, means for feeding container bodies into said pockets, means for driving the indexing means and said two feeding means in timed relation to place the end closures and container bodies in complementary relation in said pockets, a tester station, a feeler element at said station, means to reciprocate said feeler element into and out of the turret pockets as they are presented at said tester station, a suction source, means operable ,upon communication with said source to disable said driving means, a valve including a seat and a valve element engageable with said seat, a duct connecting the valve with the suction source and said disabling means, said closures when properly positioned in the pockets serving to intercept feeler movement and prevent full movement of the feeler into said pockets, means to cause the valve element to move with the feeler and away from said seat only when the feeler element moves fully into a turret pocket thereby to open said valve so as to open communication between said suction source and disabling means, a second suction source controlling valve interposed between the first mentioned valve and the suction source and connected in series in said duct with said first mentioned valve, and actuating means operable by container body contact at a definite place on the container body feeding means so related to said tester station as to be effective for holding said second valve open only when a container body is in position for ultimately being brought into cooperative relation with the particular closure at that moment opposite the feeler at the tester station whereby disabling of the driving means is controlled both by the presence of a body and the simultaneous absence of a closure in cooperative relation for being assembled one with the other, said container body feeding means including a container body feedway over which the container bodies are fed toward the turret pockets, a top guard rail overlying and vertically spaced from said feedway, and means swingably mounting said top guard rail, said first mentioned valve suction source controlling valve and said other suction source controlling valve being mounted on and movable with said top uard rail.

OTTO A. SCHMITT. 

